1. Davandeh - 8ish
2. Spur der Steine - 8ish
Possibly my favourite match of the season so far. I'll write more in a bit, but wanted to get my vote in before the deadline.
Edit:
The Runner was great. I don't think a single child-led Iranian film has let me down yet (except maybe that little stranger one.. Bashu?). The lead was so determined that he carried the film all on his own, I was enthralled watching him and rooting for him to succeed (and I was able to overlook the fact that his hair kept changing length

). The only bad part was the two scenes with the European sailor. I really liked the way it was shot as well, especially some of those running scenes and at the end. I wish the description had been a bit more accurate; it's less about him deciding to go to school, and more about him just trying to survive. Pity he didn't make more films (it seems that most Iranian child actors don't), but there's a short doc from 2016 about him that I want to see now.
Trace of Stones was a bit rough at the start; I thought it was going to be some macho macho man film, but it turned out much more nuanced than that. While it was long, I didn't find it boring (and there are 5 minutes extra in the version on kanopy than the one I have, though I suspect it might be frame rate... though I will still check to see if a scene was cut). This is one of the few films I'ver ever seen that I've been tempted to rewatch again right after finishing. It was complex, with the characters growing and changing, and I don't think I caught everything the first time around, especially with all the flashbacks. I'm amazed this was made and released, considering how harsh it is at time against communism and the Party (yes, I'm aware it was pulled from theatres pretty swiftly). I'm curious about the meaning of the title, though.
I almost skipped this match, but now I'm so glad I didn't. Thanks to both managers for their amazing picks.